King of the Mountain
by OfficialBacon
Summary: When a mysterious criminal appears and manages to outdo even the great Rainbow Dash, who can hope to stand against him? Even the rulers of Equestria know of only one.
1. Chapter 1

Two seventy pound weights dropped to the ground, side by side. Above them stood a red pegasus with a tan mane, a rippling set of back muscles, and a cocky smile. He had every right and reason to hold that smile. After all, he was none other than the legendary Landsmoker, ready for his next run.

Behind him stood a gigantic Earth pony hitched to a Plainstomper Load Wagon. Landsmoker's partner, just as famous but a bit less charismatic, the unstoppable Mass Motion. He bellowed out across the way in his booming voice.

"MAKE A PATH!" As ponies down Mane Street skittered to the side of the road, he set himself against the wagon and started out. The ground cracked beneath the huge 6,000 pound load, but nothing was stopping Mass once he was moving. "Best get out there, Red. I ain't stopping 'til dinner." Landsmoker smirked and lifted himself into the air.

He took a deep breath, enjoying the freedom of not having weights on his wings. The sky was his home, no doubt, and nopony could challenge him up here. With Mass below him, a load of cider behind Mass, and the skies open ahead, he was immortal.

In a nearby police station, Rainbow Dash was hopping up and down in joy. For the first time since leaving the Wonderbolt Academy, she'd been given a callback and a training assignment. She was to assist the Cloudsdale Police Force for a week in the High Speed Division. Her supervising officer pinned a deputy badge on her with less than professional enthusiasm, and instructed her to raise her right hoof. She did so quickly, eager to get out on the job.

"Repeat after me. I, Rainbow-"

WHIRWHIRWHIR.

The alarm blasted their ears, and Rainbow Dash immediately leapt from her spot, out to the front of the station for her first dispatch. "Come on, what do you got for me?" The shaky old stallion at the desk handed her a description and a picture.

"Speeding with an oversized load. Go get 'em." She grabbed the papers eagerly and stuffed them into her saddlebag.

"Alright! Which way, pops?" He lifted another page, studying it closely.

"Looks like...heading towards Appleoosa. Coming from...coming from...gersh...coming from Manehattan." Rainbow Dash was practically in conniptions from waiting this long, and as soon as she heard both locations she was gone.

Landsmoker smashed through a small cloud formation, enjoying the misty breeze that came with it. Mass Motion was preforming at his peak, and at this rate they'd have this cider to Appleoosa three hours ahead of schedule. He took a moment and sighed. It was really just a sad point in a pony's career when the police gave up on trying to catch him.

"This is the police! Pull that wagon over!" His ears perked up and a smile spread across his face.

"Well, might have some fun after all." He rocketed downward, coming to the altitude the voice had come from. After a quick look around, he identified the source as a lithe, somewhat charming blue pegasus with a shockingly multicolored mane. He put on a quick burst of speed and whirred past her, spinning her around in midair. "Top of the morning, flygirl! But I wouldn't be worried about that wagon if I were you." He gave a few quick flaps, drawing in some clouds, and gave his new formation a heavy kick. It collapsed into a ball of water, splashing all over the new deputy.

Rainbow Dash grimaced in anger. "Hey, who do you think you are?!" The arrogant red pegasus gave a quick chuckle.

"I might ask you the same thing. There are those who might call you a bit of a greenhorn for not recognizing me." Rainbow Dash pursed her lips, but she wasn't getting an answer, so she cracked open her saddlebag quickly. Thankfully, it was waterproof. The paper inside held only one picture instead of two, and it was of this red pegasus. The file behind it read the following:

'Landsmoker aka Bandit aka Runner aka Cannonball aka Demonwings. Former flight instructor for Wonderbolt Academy. Former Aerial Combat Instructor for Canterlot Royal Guard Pegasi Unit. Holds the title of Fastest Flyer in Equestria, the formal award for which was revoked by Celestia after his second smuggling offense. IF LOCATED, DO NOT ATTEMPT PURSUIT.'

Rainbow Dash glanced from the file to the pony, matching the cocky grin to the achievements. "So, you're a big shot in Canterlot, huh? Got the Fastest Flyer award?" He grinned, giving a mock bow. "Well, you know who I am?" He straightened up, raising an eyebrow.

"I haven't the foggiest." Rainbow Dash puffed out her chest, making sure to look as intimidating as possible.

"I'm Rainbow Dash, Youth Flight Champion, personal student of Spitfire-" Landsmoker burst out in laughter, then quickly contained it.

"Sorry. It's just that I trained her. She ended up bottom of the class." Rainbow Dash blinked a few times in disbelief, but then a smug grin spread across her face.

"And one more thing. You ever hear of the Sonic Rainboom?" A mildly entertained grin spread across his face.

"You might say that."

"Well, guess who's the only pony to ever pull one off!" Landsmoker raised an eyebrow, but no more surprise came to his face.

"Not too shabby. Of course, you do realize it had to have a name before you were born, otherwise it wouldn't be known as well as it is." She took a moment of silence to think about it. "Ever occur to you that somepony else must have figured out how to do it? And maybe that somepony was stricken from all records after a rather humiliating incident involving a foreign official, so their name never came up in the history books?" Rainbow Dash's jaw dropped.

"You don't mean..." Landsmoker chuckled.

"It used to be named the Smoking Barrel, but Celestia decided to change it after you preformed it. I guess once a filly pulls it off, you can't really name it after a weapon, can you?" Rainbow Dash shook herself. It didn't matter who he was, or who he thought he was, it was her job to catch him.

"It doesn't matter anymore. You're mine. Now reach for the sky!" Landsmoker nodded slightly.

"Now we're getting to the fun part." He glanced over his shoulder, seeing that Mass Motion was almost a mile away by now, and turned back. "Tell you what. If you can manage to lay a hoof on me, I'll go in without a fight." She grinned.

"Then I'd suggest you get going. You're the first stallion in years that I shouldn't have to go easy on." A gleam came through his eyes, and his muscles rippled underneath his wings as he spun around and blasted away. Rainbow Dash took a deep breath and launched after him.

It only took a few moments before tears came streaming off of her face, speed ripping the wind from her lungs. Up ahead, Landsmoker glanced back, a cool, calm look on his face. "Come on then, flygirl! I know that's not all you've got!" Rainbow Dash grimaced in anger, and her speed jumped again, a cone of air beginning to form around her. She was too focused to see the same cone around her quarry, or even the huge wagon as they passed Mass Motion half a mile below.

Just as she reached her limit, everything flashed white and she felt all the resistance leave her body. She rocketed forward, coming within a hair's breadth of Landsmoker before a huge red and gray ring burst from his body and he shot forward, moving even faster than before. Dust flew off the plains beneath them as he pulled his body to the left, making a huge turn. Dashie followed, shoving all her weight into the spin. They went around in this circle for almost two minutes before Landsmoker looked up and grinned, coming to a sudden stop and lifting into the air. Rainbow Dash shot past him, taking a bit of extra time to stop herself, and with her peripheral vision restored, she understood what his game had been this whole time.

"No way..." Two minutes of circular motion from two ponies with enough wingpower to achieve a Sonic Rainboom had generated a massive storm system, with a mass of clouds rivaling Cloudsdale itself. She rose into the air, bucking at clouds as she went, but nothing was going to slow this storm down. As she stared down into the center of it, Landsmoker rose behind her silently.

"And now you get to choose. Fifteen minutes of top speed moving in the opposite direction of the storm's flow will bring it down to a manageable gust, but you lose Mass and I. These are the choices you make to be the best." She gulped, looking at the inevitable task before her, and hating herself for the fear of failure, and even for the fear of the voice that gave an arrogant little chuckle before flying off into the distance.

Twenty minutes later, a completely exhausted blue pegasus stumbled into Canterlot, barely making it to the front steps of the castle before collapsing in a heap. One of the castle guards rushed inside, and mere moments later Celestia and Luna both burst out of the door, kneeling next to Rainbow Dash. Luna spun around, gesturing to a guard.

"Bring us the medic posthaste!" Celestia lifted Dashie's head gingerly, listening for a breath. Slowly, shakily, an inhale and an exhale fluttered across her ears, and she sighed with relief.

"She's alright for now, but we need to get her friends here as soon as possible. Once the medic arrives, I'll send Twilight a letter."

Twilight and four other ponies rushed into the room, gasping at the sight of Rainbow Dash lying so motionless on a bed. Rarity was, as usual, the first to speak.

"I-I don't believe we've seen her in such a lackluster state since Tank went into hibernation. Whatever could have happened?" Celestia stepped forward, and everypony bowed instinctively, lifted back up almost immediately by her magic.

"I called you all here because of exactly that. Rainbow Dash seemed to have been assisting the local police force on assignment from the Wonderbolt Academy. Spitfire specifically informed me that she was quite set on this course above all others. Unfortunately, her first runner seems to have given her more than she can handle." Pinkie gave Celestia a skeptical look.

"Not to be rude, but have you met Dashie? I don't know of anypony that might be as fast as her, and I hang around with an Alicorn all day!" She wrapped an arm around Twilight as Luna retrieved the rolled up file from within Rainbow Dash's saddlebag.

"You may not, but I believe this might explain a few things. Sister, you're more familiar with this than I am." Celestia sighed and began as the file opened in front of her, revealing the photo of the stallion.

"This is Landsmoker, a famous smuggler and racer. At least, he used to be famous." Applejack raised an eyebrow.

"And how exactly does somepony just stop being famous?" Celestia grimaced.

"He used to be a flight and combat instructor for the pegasi on the Royal Guard, but after he was challenged to a race by a very high-level griffon official, his attitude became an issue. I offered him a promotion and ten thousand Bits to throw the race and save the official's dignity, but he refused. Landsmoker even went so far as to taunt him after the race on being so slow, leading to a state of incredible tension for almost a year between our two kingdoms. In order to maintain the peace, I eliminated Landsmoker's name from the records and removed him from any contact with foreign officials, but placing so much freedom on him was ill-advised." Twilight cocked her head.

"Why? What happened?" Celestia glanced back to Rainbow Dash for a moment, then continued.

"He met an Earth pony by the name of Mass Motion, a wagon mover, and ever since they've been leading massive convoys or just running single trips at speeds that destroy the beautiful environments that the plains create or endanger everypony within a half mile. Landsmoker runs as a flackflyer, disguising himself as the real threat while Mass Motion runs the load. They've been at it for almost five years now, but they usually run along the borders of Equestria, not this close to the major cities. Obviously they're getting more confident." Rarity raised an eyebrow.

"Well, I should hope we aren't planning on allowing these ruffians to just leave. They've no right to go about refitting the law for themselves." Luna and Celestia glanced anxiously at one another.

"That's the issue. Landsmoker was famous for being the fastest and most skilled flyer in the world. Griffons, ponies, and even a few species we've never seen before or since have been outrun by him. Luna and I...well, we'd be outmatched, to say the least."

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "Well, y'all have never called us here to tell us about something we couldn't do, so what's the deal?" Celestia chuckled despite the situation.

"Well, you aren't wrong, but the only pony we know of that might be able to bring down Landsmoker..." She glanced warily back to Luna. "Well, he's a bit of a wild card." Twilight grinned proudly.

"We'd be happy to help in whatever way we can. Right?" There was a resounding chorus of 'Yes!' before Celestia nodded in satisfaction.

"Very well. Here is the pony you'll be looking for." Her horn sparked, and an image appeared between them of an Earth pony. He was just a little taller than average with a dusty white coat and a mane the color of desert sand. "His name is Broken Lightning." They all stared for a moment, taking in the appearance of their quarry. Pinkie was the first to look out from behind her picture, extending her neck out from behind it to glance at the princesses.

"What's so important about him?" Luna spoke this time, trading her place by Rainbow Dash's side with Celestia.

"'Tia has explained this to me in some detail, and I believe she would rather I tell the story." Celestia blushed for a moment, then took an interestingly detailed interest in a newly formed cowlick in Dashie's mullet. "About twenty years ago, there was a bit of a scandal when two very famous racing pegasi, a married couple, had an Earth pony foal. It took a lot to calm it down, and Celestia was only able to do so by carefully examining the child. When she did, she determined that the colt had lost its wings sometime during one of its mother's races. She was unable to confirm the exact cause, but the colt's heart was left broken until it discovered a new talent." Their eyes were all glued to her now. "Nopony in Equestria can run as fast as Broken Lightning. 'Tia taught him how to train himself, and he's been getting better ever since. We checked up on him as soon as we found out Landsmoker was involved in this, and now we genuinely believe that he is the only pony in Equestria who can bring down Landsmoker and Mass Motion." They all gazed at the picture, now in a bit of awe.

"Well, it looks like we're on another road trip.

 **Welcome, one and all, to my newest story, and one I've been keeping in storage for some time. Now, one thing I will point out is that for the first time ever, I'm using my OFFICIAL OC characters. Landsmoker and Broken Lightning are the two that I regard as my OC when they are melded into the same plot, despite everything that you may have seen through my past stories. Also, I'd like to give a HUGE thank you to all the new people following my stories. I'll be honest, at this point in my life, the support is greatly needed, and it feels even better coming up on my first anniversary as a fanfic writer. So without further ado, I'm OfficialBacon, and I'll see you in the next one.**


	2. Chapter 2

The five mares gazed out of the windows of the train, looking around for any sign of a quick runner. "I don't know about y'all, but I get the feeling we might be looking for a needle in a haystack out here."

"Even so, there isn't much else we can do but try. If even an Alicorn couldn't run this Landsmoker down, and the Princesses think that Broken Lightning can, we don't have much else to go on. Besides, I'm sure anypony who can run like that would be pretty famous around here." The train began to slow to a halt, allowing them to move to the end of the car and hop off. The first pony they met was the porter, who looked a bit relieved to see their lack of luggage. As payment for this taxing convenience, Rarity stepped up to question him.

"Excuse me, good sir, but would happen to know where we might find a Mr. Broken Lightning?" A confused look spread across the squinted face, and he shook his head. "Oh. Well, thank you anyway." Rarity turned back to her friends, clearly in deep thought. "Well, if I were some incredibly athletic stallion, my first destination in a town like this would be the racetrack. Shall we?" Twilight shrugged.

"It's as good a starting place as any."

They arrived at the track about fifteen minutes later, after numerous encounters with locals, none of whom seemed to speak an intelligible dialect, except by Applejack. With a bit of help and some impromptu lip reading, she was able to guide them to a dusty oval track separating the town and the plains, filled with their titans of stone formed by nature's might.

Standing there was a single Earth Pony matching Broken Lightning's description perfectly. Twilight stepped forward to speak, but Applejack held out a hoof. "Not yet. He needs a minute." A few seconds passed of wind and light dust brushing across all of them, but when the unspoken tension had reached its peak, he snapped into action. Silt flew off his hooves, scattering along the ground beside them. He rocketed around the track once, cleaning the dirt from the redtopped pavement with the sheer speed he exerted upon it.

As he completed his first lap, he broke off from the track and started off toward the rock formations in the distance, leaving a trail of tan smoke as he went. Speed beyond measure seemed to be at his beck and call, and it was without question that movement itself was his natural environment. "I'd say that's him." Twilight rose into the air, trying to keep an eye on her quarry, but he was moving faster even than she thought possible. As he came up to a stone wall with an inside curve, he pulled up onto the incline and ran along the wall's inside edge, leaping off the side when he came to the end. His new course led him straight to a huge rock spire, leading easily 1300 feet up. He barreled toward it, not slowing down in the slightest. When he reached the bottom of it, his entire body curved back and suddenly he was going straight up, running up the spire like it was flat land. The tips of his hooves smashed grooves in the sandstone, propelling him effortlessly. From above, he could have been a hawk chasing prey.

He began to slow as he reached three quarters of the way up, and as the very top of the structure came under his back hoof, he stopped cold. Twilight, just above him now, could see his eyes, half open in perfect bliss. Slowly, they began to close completely as he began to lean back, spinning around. As his head fell back beneath his body and he realigned with the spire, his legs started up again, blasting down even faster than he came up. Stone evaporated beneath his hooves, cracking apart as such immense pressure was applied and tossed back. For all intentions, his legs were whisking stone to shreds.

As he reached the bottom of the spire, he bounded off of the base, cracking the whole structure from top to bottom with the sheer applied force of the leap. Slowly, it began to lean and crack from the top down. Boulders crumbled from the top of it, coming down to nearly crush him. Just as they would come within mere feet, he would dart out from underneath them, sometimes leaping up and using the midair rocks as a kicking point, further increasing his already untrackable speed.

After he had already escaped the radius of the main rock mass, he spun around, kicking pebbles in a huge ring out behind him. He took a deep breath as the huge spire came crashing down behind him, causing a massive dust cloud to arise and engulf the whole group.

As the cloud faded, they all broke into a coughing fit as the pony trotted past them, skirting mere inches from Rarity and Fluttershy. "If you want to talk, then walk." They spun around, having barely caught their breath before having to catch up.

"Broken Lightning!" He stopped cold at the sound of Twilight's voice. "Sir, I need to ask you to come with me." He spun around, ice in his very light blue eyes.

"Do I look broken to you?" She stopped cold, having just landed in the midst of a dozen new piles of dust.

"Umm...Excuse me?" He stepped forward, coming mere inches from her face.

"Did that performance make me look like some fool who cannot look out for himself? Do you think me to be some sort of invalid?" She stepped back in shock, shaking her head vigorously.

"No! Of course not!" He sneered and spun around, flicking his tail at her.

"Then do not use that name to refer to me. I am not broken. My name is Lightning Legs." She gulped nervously.

"Very well, Mr...um...Legs. We've been sent by Celestia to bring you to Canterlot for a royal mission." He laughed spitefully, keeping on walking.

"Really? After twenty years of denying me my only wish in life, she wants me to do her job for her? Laughable." Pinkie jumped up beside him.

"What do you mean? I've never known Celestia to withhold anything from anypony that needed it."

"That's exactly the excuse she used when she refused to give me the wings that were taken from me before my birth. I spent almost a month begging her for the famous wings spell of Starswirl the Bearded, but nothing. She kept claiming that I was a miracle, somepony that would grow in the world's admiration. Once I came down off of my little high of happiness from her spiel, I realized what I really was. A freak." They all stopped, forcing him to turn around.

"What are y'all talking about? Ya look just like anypony else." He huffed.

"Perhaps, if I was born from an Earth Pony. But having this-" He looked back and forth over himself. "Having me born from two pegasi...it was a disgrace. All my parents ever wanted was a little filly that they could teach to fly, send through Cloudsdale's famous Flight School. This is what they got, and every time they would look at me all I would see in their eyes was a terrible weight, a weight that kept them pinned to the earth with me. I was the sole cause of all their unhappiness in life, and the look in their eyes was all the proof of it I needed. I was a disappointment, a bane to their pride and joviality. And so every time I see that blasted mare, all I see is the terrible sadness that we both brought upon my family." They all gasped at hearing Celestia referred to in such a manner. Fluttershy came near tears, both from the story and the harsh words. Twilight rushed out in front of him, her nostrils flaring out.

"Look, I don't care who you think you are, nopony speaks about Celestia like that. Think about it, if she had given you wings, would you have ever learned to run as fast as you can? Do you really think that having wings would make you any better of a pony?" He bumped past her, forcing her to fall to the ground.

"Don't talk to me about what could have been. Tell Celestia that she can feel free to burn me off the face of Equestria if she can catch me. Otherwise, leave me be."

The five of them sat in their hotel room an hour later, engaged in an intense session of silent thinking. Nopony dared break the silence, as Twilight had been falling in and out of a rage ever since their conversation with Lightning Legs. Fluttershy looked a bit stressed, as was expected, but they were all surprised when she finally spoke.

"Um...so how do we tell Celestia about Mr. Legs?" They all looked at the floor for a moment, and even Pinkie's hair began to droop.

"I reckon the best thing to do would be just talk to her and see if maybe she could find some way to get ahold of that wings spell." Twilight shook her head.

"Come on, Applejack, you know just as well as anypony that the only wings spell in the world is the one I used on Rarity a few years ago. Getting Celestia to cast that on him wouldn't do anypony any good."

"Come on, everypony! There has to be something we could do to convince him how important this is. Even Cranky learned to listen after a while." They all fell into their thinking stupor for another moment before there was a knock on the door. Twilight trotted over, pulling the door open and gasping as Spike fell through, exhausted.

"Letter...from...Celestia..."

"Spike! How did you get here?"

"Chased...train...from...Ponyville..." She rolled her eyes and removed the letter from Spike's outstretched claw, lifting him up and onto her seat as the parchment unrolled.

 _"Dear Twilight,_

 _After you left, it occurred to Luna and I that Broken Lightning may still hold a grudge against me for some of the mishaps that were involved during my examinations. Should this prove to be an issue, tell him that he'll be doing a favor for Spitfire. Should that fail, offer him the chance to meet her after the job is done. I believe that may bring him around._

 _Sincerely Yours,_

 _Celestia_

Twilight folded up the letter, grinning from ear to ear. "Girls, I think we've got ourselves a lead."

 **Ok, so a bit of news. Firstly, this will be the last chapter update on this story for the next two weeks, which is why it's a bit of a rush chapter. My apologies, but family does still come first, and I'm honestly amazed I had the time to start this story at all. With that, I'd love to see some reviews detailing anything that you guys don't like about the story or stylization, and I'd also like to see some stating what you really like and want to see more of. Both are greatly appreciated, and I hope to see them soon. I'm OfficialBacon, and I'll see you in the next one.**


	3. Chapter 3

The group didn't catch back up to Lightning Legs for almost twenty minutes, seeing as he had developed the ability to get lost very easily by living the lifestyle that he had. "Come on, where is he? How tough can it be to find one pony in a town this small?" Twilight stomped a hoof in frustration, and just as it struck the ground a pair of pegasi wearing cowpony hats and vests flew through a nearby window, skidding ten yards on the dust before rolling to a halt and limping away as quickly as they could.

Inside the window was none other than Lightning Legs, taking a sip of his cider, being eyed by everypony in the bar. Even the barmare leaned a bit farther over the counter to get a closer look at him, but not out of aggression. She chuckled, turning back to cleaning glasses after a couple of moments. "One of these days, he's gonna meet a pony he can't beat." The cook leaned out of the order window and piped up in a strange accent.

"Maybe so, but I hope it's not while I'm still here. Those wings for hire are bad business, and you know it. Tell you what, give him a free round." The waitress shrugged and grabbed a bottle, spinning it down the bar toward Lightning. He stopped it, took a brief look at the label, and topped off his half-full drink.

Back outside the window, the whole group was a bit nervous about going inside, considering their first impressions of the establishment. All except one, of course.

"Hey, I think we found him." Pinkie hopped through the busted window and plopped down next to Lightning. "Sooooo, there was something we forgot to mention."

"Fascinating. Interestingly enough, I don't care." He took another sip, not looking down. Pinkie was lifted off the ground and away by Twilight's magic as the Princess stepped onto the floor in her friend's place.

"You might want to listen anyway." He sighed, draining his cider and cutting his eyes at her.

"Shoot." She took a second to collect her thoughts and began.

"We've been tracking the pony we need you to catch, and his next strike will be adjacent to a Wonderbolts performance." She was almost thrown backwards by his reaction.

"WHAT?!" He tore out of his barstool, practically on top of her. "Who am I hunting?" Twilight gulped.

"His name is Landsmoker." He blinked once, stumbled backward, and tripped over his barstool, landing on his rump. Twilight stepped up to him, gazing into his now blank eyes. "Mr. Legs? Are you alright?" The barmare stepped forward, carrying a bottle with her tail.

"Give him a swig of this." Twilight took the bottle and gave the three Xs on its label a quick look before tipping it up over Lightning's mouth. He gasped for air, shaking his entire body.

"You did say Landsmoker?" Twilight nodded. He set his face, narrowing. "I've been waiting for fifteen years to catch that dirty lecher.

…

They sat in a train car twenty minutes later, with everypony gathered around Lightning. They gazed at him expectantly for a few moments before he finally began. "Okay, so this all started sixteen years ago, when you were all just born. Because I was born to two pegasi, I can walk on clouds, and so I watched the flight trainees sometimes. It was because of that that I met Spitfire while she was being trained by Landsmoker. She and I hit it off pretty well considering my lack of wings, and so I promised to be there at her graduation. Everything was going well enough, and I was planning on asking her out when I saw something before the graduation." He took a deep, angry breath. "Landsmoker had cornered her in his office and was threatening her with a failing grade if she wouldn't…" He stopped, leaving the obvious conclusion.

"Once he found out that I would have ruined him, he quit and went to work in Canterlot. Spitfire asked me not to spread the word, since that would have ruined her flying career. After that, we started growing apart and…the rest is history. She became a Wonderbolt like she'd always wanted, and I became Lightning Legs." There was silence for a moment, right up until there was a pounding on the door of their car. Twilight slid it open and in flopped Spike, gasping for breath comically.

…

In a bar in Manehattan, Landsmoker and Mass Motion clinked their glasses together, both grinning widely. "A salute to you, my good friend, for a run well made." Mass bowed mockingly.

"And one to you, for such an admirable defense." They laughed aloud, taking a gulp of their ciders.

"Well, to be honest, I only had one competitor. And don't get me wrong, she was good and all, but…" He took another gulp. "She was no Landsmoker. And get this, she'd been trained by Spitfire!" Mass Motion threw his head back with laughter.

"No way. You serious?" Landsmoker sighed.

"Every word." They took a moment to regain their normal breathing before Landsmoker brought up the obvious conclusion. "I've just brought Canterlot down on us, haven't I?"

"Yep." There was silence between them for a few seconds before he spoke again.

"What do we do, then?"

"Lay low? It's always worked before." Landsmoker shook his head, sliding his drink across the bar.

"No. I'm tired of just sliding along beneath the scope of anypony's interest. You know what we need to do?" Mass Motion took another sip of his cider, not answering. "We need to get a convoy and mow the whole city over." Mass Motion raised an eyebrow.

"You do realize how many ponies that would take?" Landsmoker nodded.

"Yep. But you can cut that into a quarter if they have loaded wagons." Mass Motion narrowed his eyes, tapping the bar for a refill.

"Fine, but you're recruiting."

"Suits me just fine. Rest up. We'll be leaving out in three days."

…

The train pulled into the Canterlot station, greeted by Celestia and Luna themselves. Twilight and her friends came out first, followed shortly by Lightning Legs. He eyeballed Celestia for a few moments, then finally spoke. "I was told you need me to hunt down Landsmoker." She nodded.

"We'll be glad to offer any assistance we can." He eyed her, took a deep breath, and nodded.

"I'll need weights. An iron saddle, full armor, and four saddlebags filled with lead bars." He turned to Applejack. "I'm willing to bet you know somewhere that needs an extra hoof on the plow." She nodded. "Alright. Once I'm outfitted, I'll get to training. If I know Landsmoker, it'll be three days before I'm fast enough to catch him. And then…" Despite himself, he grinned. "Then we can have some fun."

 **Hello, everyone, and thank you greatly for reading. A personal announcement, uploads will continue scarcity until the beginning of September. I know, it's annoying, but my semi-hiatus is rapidly coming to a close. Another announcement, and one on a much more positive note...WE DID IT! I've reached my one-year mark as a fanfiction writer, and boy have I come a long way. If you don't believe me, compare some of my first stories side by side with my more recent works. I couldn't have done any of this without you guys and your feedback, and just the inspiration that I get from seeing a new face on my list of readers, so I'd like to give you all a massive thank-you. So, without further ado, I'm OfficialBacon, and I'll see you in the next chapter.**


	4. Chapter 4

Applejack gestured out to the untamed area beyond the west orchard, still glancing at the massive set of weights hanging off of Lightning Legs. "This here's the new land we got ahold of a few weeks ago, and Big Mac hasn't gotten around to plowing it yet. We'd be mighty grateful if y'all could get at least a quarter of it done up for planting." Legs chuckled under his breath as he trotted over to the plow at the edge of the field and hooked himself into it.

"You might want to stand back." Applejack raised an eyebrow, but regretted not following his instructions a few seconds later as dirt and pebbles were thrown up in her face. Lightning Legs tore the plow all the way past her, starting off at forty miles per hour easily. Her jaw dropped as she watched him work through the land like it was warm butter, the leather harness straining against him. Granny Smith and Applebloom, a few yards back, trotted up, their mouths gaping open just as wide at the sight.

"Sweet Celestia…I reckon he's going even faster than Mac, ain't he?" Granny Smith shook her head as she regained her senses.

"Won't last long. There's a mean-looking boulder in the north corner of that field. I'll eat my bonnet if he pulls it out." She nodded firmly, and they all set into a stare as Lightning Legs approached the north corner of the field.

He felt the boulder coming as a more solid ground under his hooves, and his shoulders bulged, bracing for the oncoming impact. As the iron plow smashed into the underground stone mass, he reared, hooves flashing in the sun. Steam blasted from his nostrils and his front hooves came down, planting him on the ground even more firmly than before. He shoved all of his strength against the huge rock, slowly dragging it out of the ground, inch by inch. By the time the boulder's midsection had cleared the ground, they began to understand how big it was.

The whole mass of granite was easily ten times as tall as Lightning, and seven times as wide. The plow was dwarfed by the whole rock, and the straps began to fray and tear under the massive strain. As the whole thing finally came loose from the earth beneath it, Lightning stopped and glanced back at his work. He nodded, backing up to the rock and giving it a solid kick from the points of his hooves. He strapped back into the plow and started away again as the whole thing collapsed into dozens of smaller, hoof-sized rocks. As he passed back around the front of the field, he raised an eyebrow at Granny Smith, who had a fluffy piece of cloth lodged between her teeth.

…

Landsmoker threw open the door to the Cracked Axle, the favorite bar of most wagon-runners in eastern Equestria. There was a chorus of cheers as he strolled through, and as was to be expected, he basked in it for a few moments before moving to the bar. He found a seat next to an old friend, Dust Buster, and tapped on the bar. A glass of cider slid down to him just as the curtain rose on the other side of the building. There was clapping and stomping of hooves as a tan mare with a chocolate brown mane stepped onto the stage, glancing at each stallion in the house individually and beginning to dance.

"So, Landsmoker. The prodigal son returns." Landsmoker turned from the show to Dust Buster, grinning in appreciation.

"So he does. I wish it were under better circumstances, though." Dust Buster took a long sip of cider before asking.

"Go on."

"It seems that Spitfire's got herself some students. You remember Spitfire?"

"The one the you got caught with in a…less than chivalrous situation?" Landsmoker pursed his lips, then shrugged.

"The same. Anyhow, one of her students came after me on the way here. A real go-getter, but I was able to outrun her pretty easily. Trouble is, it looks like she went to the Princesses for help, and we're fixing to take the fight to them before it gets to us." Dust Buster took another sip.

"And?" Now Landsmoker took a sip of his own cider.

"We're getting as many loaders as we can, and we're going to mow Canterlot down like a lawn." Dust Buster glanced over.

"Not my first thought on something like that, but alright. I'm guessing you want me to start getting a gang rounded up?" Landsmoker was silent, sipping now on his cider. "Alright, but I get a ten percent cut of any spoils we end up with." Landsmoker shrugged.

"Fine by me. Take the whole lot if you want." He downed the rest of the drink and strolled out as Dust Buster stood and began walking around the bar.

As the sunlight struck him again, he grinned. One advantage to his lifestyle that more than made up for the lack of stability: all of the lovely belles. He sauntered across the street, head held high, more than aware of the attention he was getting. More than one mare stepped from the side of some unfortunate colt to come and get a better look at this new stallion in town. He eyed each and every one of them, giving a wink every now and then, waiting on one that might be worth the time.

He didn't find such a specimen until he was already ten blocks from the bar, but every inch had been worth it. A lithe, beautifully curved blue mare with a perfect flowing green mane. She turned to the side, and lo and behold, a pegasus. He grinned, already planning his course of action, right up until she took a step to the side and he was introduced forcibly to her father.

He looked like the very personification of brutality, with a chest the size of Landsmoker's entire body. He glanced back and forth between the two of them, gauging his chances. His eyes narrowed, and a sly grin spread across his face. His wings extended, and suddenly he was gone. The father turned, rage growing on his already unpleasant face, and yelled for his daughter. Too late by a long shot.

"What are you doing?" Landsmoker came to a skidding halt just outside the town borders, looking his quarry in the eyes now.

"With a dad like that, I figured you might need a little fun. That, and you look like a pretty decent flyer. Why, was I wrong?" She gave a confused grin, but didn't answer.

"We've never met, have we?" He shook his head slowly.

"Don't believe so. Why?"

"I figure I'd remember somepony as crazy as you." She lifted into the air, and just like that she was gone. Landsmoker smirked, blinked her dust out his eyes, and he was gone after her.

…

Back at the Apple farm, Lightning Legs had just unhooked himself from the plow, sweat glistening off of his coat. Applejack checked the clock inside their house, shaking her head in disbelief. "He went through that whole dang field in an hour flat. I'll tell ya, I'm glad I don't have to compete with somepony like him in any rodeos."

Lightning rapped on the door, his eyes getting heavy. Applebloom tossed it open just in time for him to fall through, already sawing logs. "Hey, Granny! Do we have any spare beds?" Big Mac shook his head, but Applejack stepped in.

"I'm afraid not, sugar, but I know Twilight has at least one in that new castle of hers. Mac, do you reckon you could get him and his gear over to her place?" Mac worked his head up underneath Lightning's body and tried to lift to no avail. He lifted back up, tossing his massive yoke to the side and nodding as he tried a second time, now managing to lift Lightning and his weights, albeit with a bit of strain.

"Eeyup."

 **Well, that's that. If nothing else, this chapter was meant to give you a bit more insight into both Landsmoker and Broken Lightning. I'd like a bit of feedback as to how effective the chapter and the story in general have been in conveying their characters, just as a gauge for how well I'm doing. Anyway, I'm OfficialBacon, and I'll see you all in the next chapter!**


	5. Chapter 5

Landsmoker chuckled as his prey darted in and out of dozens of rock formations, checking in every direction for him. He had to admit, she was good. He'd had a bit of trouble keeping up once she'd hit the rocks, but she knew the area better than him. Not a problem anymore. He spread his wings, his back rippling as an exhilarated grin spread across his face. He took a single leap, making only the most minor flaps to his wings and getting as high as he could go. Frost began forming on his nose, working it's way down his body until he finally stopped, letting his head fall to the bottom of his body and he plummeted. He continued on this course, a grin spreading across his face. He hadn't gotten her name yet, but this would fix that quick.

He opened his wings, pushing forward and waiting the gravity out as a cone of air began forming him, flowering almost instantly into a massive red and gray circle, blasting the air with sound and light as his speed doubled and he rocketed down through the rock formations effortlessly, lapping the mare at least three times before speeding through a gap mere inches wider than himself and skidding to a halt. He took a deep breath as steam curled off of his body and his companion landed beside him, one eyebrow raised as she spoke. "I hope that wasn't you compensating for something."

His eyes bulged with laughter as he tried to voice his reply. "No…no-no, that was…that was me trying to ask your name." She rolled her eyes.

"Plain words would have worked, but my name is Sky Skimmer." He nodded gratefully, silently berating himself for his idiocy. It had certainly been a while since he'd been willing to exert himself for the attention of a female. He smirked as he trotted after her, shaking his head.

…

Twilight lifted her head from the pillow, hearing only a strange shuffling sound along with repetitive breathing from the next room, where Big Mac had dropped off Lightning Legs just a few hours ago. It was the middle of the night, so what was with the noise? She slid out of bed, her legs still a little wobbly from coming so suddenly out of sleep, but she was legitimately concerned about her guest.

She pushed his door ajar, and through it she saw the most heart-wrenching thing she'd encountered since Luna's experience with the Tantabus. Lightning Legs stood in the middle of the room, his saddlebags filled to the brim with the thickest books her library had to offer along with the lead bars in their depths. Sweat rolled down the sheer metal surface of his armor, and he was even wearing the iron saddle again, with four more baskets of encyclopedias and dictionaries strapped to it. Under all that weight he lowered himself slowly, agonizingly, until his chest fur brushed the ground, then up he came, trembling with effort and fatigue.

Twilight glanced in the direction that his gaze was pointed, and there, on the top of the bookstand just in front of Lightning, there stood a picture of Spitfire in front of the Wonderbolts team, with Landsmoker hovering over top of them all. Their graduation picture from the Canterlot archives. She blinked, realizing that the heavy breathing had stopped. Without warning, an off-yellow face appeared in front of her and she stumbled backward, eyes wide. "I-I'm so sorry! I just wanted to come check on y-" He held up a hoof, silencing her effectively.

"Don't worry about it. I've already told you everything there really is to know about me, so snoop away. I just use that picture as a bit of a catalyst to push me farther. Everything wrong with my life in one picture…it works pretty well." She gulped, blinking in disbelief. How was he not angry?

"Do you ever stop thinking about her?" He nodded, his eyes half closed and a smile on his face.

"When I run. It takes away all the things I can't do, and replaces them with the one thing I'm unbeatable at. For as long as I'm running, I'm just me. I don't represent anything sad or desperate while I can feel the wind in my mane, just a pony who can feel himself flying inside." Twilight grinned a little, seeing more and more parallels between Lightning and her own friends now.

"You know, I could take you to go see her…Spitfire, I mean." He raised an eyebrow at the suggestion.

"Really? I figured she'd be a way away at this point." Twilight shook her head.

"Nope, she lives in Cloudsdale, same as most pegasi. And as it happens, Cloudsdale is just above us. You can still walk on clouds, I'm assuming." He shrugged with uncertainty.

"Last time I checked, but it's been almost ten years." She trotted past him, heading for the door.

"Well, are you ready to find out?" He chuckled lightly and followed her out into the sunlight.

…

Landsmoker and Sky Skimmer strolled into the Cracked Axle, and immediately drinks were raised to them, along with cheers of his name. As he approached the bar, two mugs of cider slid down the surface. Just as he tucked into his, the door slammed open and a massive, dirty, gray stallion stepped in. Sky Skimmer's eyes bulged and she started to slide out of her barstool until Landsmoker held out an arm and tilted his head toward the man. Two wagon pullers, just as huge, stepped between the pair and Sky Skimmer's father. Landsmoker stared at him between his friends and spoke, his voice level despite the situation.

"Now, sir. I have no intention of doing anything more than taking your daughter out for a drink and a bit of dancing. If you'll turn around and not interrupt, I'm sure everypony in this town will corroborate that nothing more than just that will have happened this night." The larger pony blinked once, and just as soon as Landsmoker had his mug to his lips again both of his friends were floored, his assailant charging him. Sky Skimmer jumped forward, trying to grab him and calm him down, but to no avail.

Landsmoker zipped around the bar, delivering a blow every few passes to a random part of the larger fighter's body, eventually dropping him to his knees, and finally a hoof to the temple dropped him to the floor. Sky Skimmer looked him over in shock, then her face quickly moved to disgust as he reached down, picking her father up off the floor of the bar and moving him outside. Landsmoker chuckled as he tapped on the bar for another round, shrugging indifferently. "Life goes on."

…

Lightning Legs and Twilight landed on the fluffy surface of Cloudsdale, everypony around casting them odd looks. Lightning began sinking almost immediately, having not taken off his weighted saddlebag or saddle. He looked around in awe, a ghost of a smile working its way across his face as he stepped forward, wading his way through the clouds. As he looked around, Twilight pulled aside the first pegasus to walk too close and whispered a request. He nodded quickly and leapt off quickly, heading straight up until he was nearly out of sight. Meanwhile, Lightning Legs was completely unaware of the strange and almost angry looks he was getting from the workers around him. Twilight's eyes bulged and she jumped in next to him, gulping nervously. He glanced at her, giving a half grin as he spoke.

"You don't have to protect me, you know. I spent a lot of time here as a colt. I can handle whatever they throw at me." Twilight looked around skeptically, and was relieved beyond words to see none other than Spitfire gliding in from above. There was a light 'poof' as she landed, and Lightning Legs simply stared at her for a moment. Twilight glanced between them, the silence almost scaring her a bit, right up until Lightning finally spoke. "After two decades…still every bit as beautiful." Spitfire chuckled, taking a step forward.

"Twenty years and the same old lines. How have you been, Lightning?" He smiled, stepping forward to meet her.

"Never once as good as I am right now. I wish…" He glanced downward as if he'd been struck. "I wish it could be under better circumstances." Spitfire raised an eyebrow, turning her head to meet his face again.

"What exactly do you mean by that? Tell me you haven't gotten into trouble with the law." He shook his head.

"I wish it were that simple. Landsmoker's back, and I've been assigned to run him down."


	6. Chapter 6

Spitfire's eyes narrowed, stepping in closer to Lightning Legs. "I thought we agreed to drop this two decades ago." He took a deep breath, his eyes closing.

"Not really. You begged me to drop it, and then you started pushing me away. I left because I couldn't watch you try and bear that on your own, and no matter how hard I tried, you wouldn't let me help. So...I left." Spitfire s jaw dropped, and her hoof shot up, directing Lightning s gaze into her own.

"Is that how you saw that? Seriously? No, you left because you couldn't handle what you knew I was going to be. You couldn't deal with the fact that I was going to be a Wonderbolt, you thought I was going to leave you behind, and so you ran." The larger pony stared at her, his face switching back and forth between barely contained rage and a genuine caring expression. It was as if he was two ponies, but he quickly stopped when the clouds were suddenly torn out from behind him. He spun around, his face switching to a more permanent grin as a few familiar faces rose from behind him, their leader speaking.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't our old pal Broken Lightning. Long time, no see." The off-white pony huffed at his old friends, the remaining eleven members of the Wonderbolts.

"Yeah, it has been a while, hasn't it? Still tucking away the pies, I see." Soarin chuckled, not able to deny the statement. "Anyway, I can't claim to have a lot of time to spend here." The group of pegasi landed, taking a stance beside Lightning as Soarin addressed the previous statement.

"I was about to ask about that. What's with the getup?"

"Long story." Soarin raised an eyebrow.

"Well, unlike you, I've got plenty of time." Lightning rolled his eyes, taking a seat on the fluffy surface.

"Alright. Simply put, Landsmoker's back." Eleven pairs of eyebrows raised, and muttering went through the whole group. Blaze was the only one to ask the obvious question.

"But...what's the problem with that? He taught us everything we know." Lightning Legs cut his eyes at Blaze, who backed away quickly.

"Maybe so, but that doesn't excuse his more recent activities. After he left, he took a spot in Canterlot training royal guards, but he got laid off after an altercation with a griffon official. Ever since then, he's been running as a flackflyer for illegal transports and convoys. We've got word that his next run will be adjacent to your next show, and so I've been hired to run him down the next time he shows his face." Soarin stepped up, wrapping an arm around Lightning's shoulders and giving him a look almost like pity."

"Well, I appreciate the enthusiasm, but I have to ask. Out of everypony in Equestria, why you? No offense, I know you're really fast, but Landsmoker is easily the most talented flyer I've ever seen. He's faster than this whole team put together and then some, and he's created techniques that nopony else can even understand, let alone duplicate." Lightning shrugged the arm off, smirking at the pegasus.

"Speed isn't the issue. Simply put, the only thing Landsmoker has on me is a pair of wings. I'm twice the pony I used to be, and ten times as fast." Twilight, in a rush of enthusiasm, stepped forward to put in her two Bits.

"He's right. I watched him crumble a whole stone spire with one jump on the outskirts of Appleoosa. If anypony could catch Landsmoker, it's Lightning Legs." They all glanced at her a bit awkwardly, and she stepped back as they resumed conversation.

...

Back at the Cracked Axle, Landsmoker was finishing his tenth pint of cider, and he had a distinct sway to him. He slid out of his eyes, taking a moment to get used to standing before moving toward the door. Dust Buster eyed him as he stepped out, taking a break from his own drink to make a single comment. "Whatever you're doing, it's a bad idea in your state." Landsmoker turned to his old friend, blinking every few seconds in a very inebriated fashion.

"I believe I'll be just fine. I'm just going to go check on our target. Canterlot's a tricky place to get to to begin with, and I do my best strategizing when I'm hammered." Dust Buster rolled his eyes as his friend and employer staggered out the door, taking off quickly.

...

After what seemed like hours of talking, Lightning and the Wonderbolts finally let up, enjoying the silence and each other's familiar company for a few moments. Twilight cocked her head at the sight. Lightning seemed so...in place. She could tell beyond a shadow of a doubt that he'd been born to be here, standing with the Wonderbolts, but fate had gotten in his way. Why would something so terrible happen to somepony so passionate about their life's desire?

She barely noticed that they had all turned to look at a point on top of the city hall, a point which she quickly turned to find as well. From her viewpoint it looked like nothing more than a red dot, but it fell from the spire of the cloudy building and glided downward toward, growing in size and visibility as it came. After a few seconds, it was easily identifiable, the name spoken only by Spitfire.

"Landsmoker."

The red pegasus landed with a skid five yards from the group, his eyes obscured by his perfectly trimmed mane. He lifted his head, his eyes scanning the faces before him and a less than pleasing grin parting his lips.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't my old proteges." He began walking in a circle around them, but everypony was so focused on him that they didn't notice Lightning Legs matching his pace around the circle. "Looks like you've all done mighty well for yourselves. That's good, knowing I've left a positive impression on this generation. I've got to say, a few of you have definitely exceeded expectations." He blurred out of vision, phasing back in a yard from Spitfire, his bloodshot, cider-clouded eyes meeting hers directly. "Spitfire. You seem to have done fine with yourself as well. Better than I would have expected, considering your particular habit for unruliness." Nopony could have expected the next set of words.

"You'll be stepping away from her now, or I'll be planting my hoof between your lungs." They all turned to Lightning Legs, Landsmoker a bit more shakily than any of the others.

"Oh, will you now? And who might you be...?" Landsmoker stopped short of what was sure to be a vulgar and insensitive insult as he realized who he was facing. The cloudiness in his eyes faded quickly and was replaced at the same speed by cold anger. "Oh, I remember you. I looked long and hard for you, colt." They began to circle one another, the Wonderbolts backing off. Even Twilight stepped back, almost involuntarily. "Let me tell you something. Once I left here, I was some sort of grateful to you. I had the perfect life in Canterlot. Training guards, kicking the tar out of any Tartarus-spawned monsters that came around...I was set. Until the day I was told to throw a race. Everypony in Equestria will tell you: Landsmoker doesn't lose. Even if he's paid to." Landsmoker took a deep breath, clearly trying to hold back a massive anger. "After that, my life was nothing. As far as the common people were concerned, I had never existed. All my awards, my achievements, gone like the wind. I had to claw my way back to the top through the underground, surviving on my own blood and sweat, and it's all because of you." Lightning Legs huffed, coming to a stop.

"That just goes to show you. One thing you should have learned from your experiences, Landsmoker, is that there's nothing more dangerous than somepony with nothing to lose. And trust me, I've never had less to lose." The red pegasus snarled, but it quickly twisted into a confident smile.

"And that's exactly why I won't be taking from you. The day after tomorrow, I'm turning the entirety of Canterlot into dust in the wind, and there's nothing you can do to stop me." Fourteen pairs of eyes bulged at his words, and Lightning scowled, rushing Landsmoker without hesitation. The older pony simply sidestepped him, using his wings to keep balanced. As he pulled around, Lightning Legs bucked off his weights, charging a second time. Landsmoker rose into the air, easily outmaneuvering the larger pony with his use of the air. "Honestly, this is just pitiful. Here I am, threatening to destroy the capital of the country, and you can't even get close enough to try and stop me. Here, let me give you a hoof." Landsmoker dropped, tapping Lightning's forehead with the tip of one hoof.

Twilight and Spitfire both rushed forward to offer assistance, but were thrown back with shock as Lightning turned and bellowed at the both of them. "STAY AWAY FROM ME!" He spun back around, rushing a third time, taking a leaping swing at his opponent. This time his hoof skidded across Landsmoker's face, leaving a tiny red gap that trickled a mere three drops of blood down the already red face. Landsmoker glanced down at the wound, then he was gone. He was behind Spitfire, then beside Twilight, then above Lightning, then he was everywhere. No matter where anypony looked, there was Landsmoker, moving so fast there seemed to be dozens of him. Lightning swung wildly at those closest to him, his face growing more desperate and angry until finally there was only one Landsmoker left, right behind his ear.

"I'm going to bury you deeper than you buried your parents' dreams, boy." Lightning dropped, falling to his knees, sobbing and shaking with uncontrolled rage and frustration. Landsmoker rose into the air and Spitfire jumped to Lightning's side despite his previous warning, cradling his head against her. The rest of them glared up at Landsmoker, though none dared attack him. "You have thirty-six hours to say your goodbyes to Canterlot. I'll be back the day after tomorrow." And without another word, he was gone, leaving the only hope for Equestria weeping in his wake.

 **So...yeah. A bit darker this chapter, and a bit of an emotional rollercoaster, but I have a request to make. This is one of the only stories I've done where I've received absolutely no feedback from you guys, and so I can't actually know how good or bad I'm doing. I'm not asking for praise, but just a landmark from those who care about where stories like these go. For those of you who've read this far, thank you dearly, and I'll see you in the next one.**


	7. Chapter 7

Broken Lightning sat alone in an empty room in Canterlot Castle, his eyes closed. Every few moments his eyebrows would twitch downward in some internal fit of anger, but he made no outward movement.

Spitfire, Celestia, Luna, and Twilight stood at the door, looking in through a small glass window. Spitfire shook her head, her eyes filled with regret.

"I shouldn't have been so hard on him. I...well, he wasn't lying. I did kind of push him away after my graduation. I was afraid of what that kind of thing could do to my career, and I refused to let him in to help." Celestia took a breath.

"I placed too much on him as well. I shouldn't have expected anypony to be able to run down Landsmoker. We're both at fault."

There came a voice from behind the group, a voice that they were all happy to hear despite the situation.

"Could I talk to him?" They turned, slight grins appearing on all their faces as Rainbow Dash came walking up to the door. "Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt, but it's just...I've heard things about him." Celestia opened the door.

"You're welcome to try, but he hasn't said anything to anypony since he arrived here." She stepped through, nodding to Celestia as she went. The door closed behind her and she stepped over beside the stallion, taking a seat beside him.

There were a few minutes of silence before she spoke, still just staring at the wall ahead of her. "So, you're Broken Lightning, huh?" No reply. "You know, I didn't even think you were real. I saw you in a few of the Wonderbolt graduation pictures, there in the background. I thought it was just a prank until Twilight introduced me to the Daring Do books, and in Book Three Daring meets a pony who can run faster than anything she's ever seen. He outstrips the wind, even reverses a hurricane. I thought she was just being dramatic, but when I found out that they had found you and sent you after that Landsmoker..." He turned to her, his eyes only showing a feeling of loss and hopelessness.

"It doesn't matter. I'm no pegasus. I can't even hold a candle to Landsmoker." She gave him an incredulous look, chuckling in shock.

"Are you kidding? Me and every other pegasus out there would give our right hooves to be as fast as you!" She stopped, placing a hoof to her chin. "Well, except maybe for Fluttershy." Broken Lightning's pupils dilated, a strange look coming back over him.

"Do you really mean that? I mean...I never thought I was really..." She wrapped one arm around him, glancing over at him every few seconds.

"Trust me, I know awesome when I see it. And you, you've got a lot of awesome in you." He nodded gratefully, coming to his hooves slowly. As they both regained their stances, he took a breath.

"Thank you. For everything." She walked him to the door of the room, glancing over to him every few seconds.

"So, you ready to take on Landsmoker for real now?" He started to push the door open, but stopped halfway to glance down at the floor.

"I-I don't know if I can. He completely demolished me up there, and it didn't even look like he was trying. I might be able to keep up with him, but not if he uses a complete other plane of motion. I'm stuck here on the ground, he's not." Celestia finished opening the door from the opposite side, looking down at Lightning now.

"Perhaps you really have forgotten. Did I not teach you how to train yourself, Broken Lightning?" He almost cringed at hearing the name, but this time he accepted it.

"That's true enough, but-" He stopped, and his jaw dropped open. "Ohhhh...How could I have forgotten? Of course!" The rest of the group glanced at him curiously, and he simply turned to Rainbow Dash and Spitfire, who was still somewhat stuck back in a corner. "I know this is going a bit fast, but I need you promise that you'll never tell anypony what you see here. This is a secret between Celestia and I, something that we've been working on ever since you graduated from the Academy, Spitfire." They all glanced between one another, then nodded back to him. He gave a half grin, then turned to Celestia. "Alright. Do it."

…

Landsmoker glanced back at the small army of wagons, each of them just barely visible by the unicorn that sat on their tops, casting a communication spell. A voice sounded off in his ear, belonging to Mass Motion.

 _"Alright, you ready to roll?"_ Landsmoker nodded to himself and spoke back into midair.

"Yeah. The communication spells are up through the whole convoy? Calling all wagons."

 _"Check."_

 _"Yo!"_

 _"Right here."_

These messages continued for a few seconds, confirming that the spell was completely active. Landsmoker checked off each voice in his head, counting a total of twenty. As they finished, he gave a last message. "Alright, we roll to Appleoosa. There should be another group waiting on us on the outskirts, then we rendezvous with a few other associates of mine on the way to Canterlot. Now, LET'S RIDE!

 **Oh, man...okay. For the few people reading this story, I am sooo sorry about the massive time gap on this update. My little page has been growing a bit recently, and I've received my first few real requests. Unfortunately, this has had me a bit flabbergasted, and I've been scrambling to get chapters out for all my stories. But, now things should be back to normal, and the finale for this one should be up in no time. Thank you all so much, if you're still here, and I'll see you in the next one.**


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